My furniture won’t fit up the stairs, now what?
What do you do when the furniture will not fit up the stair case?
Island homes often steal floor space from the staircases, so shore living means we have to hoist sofas or dressers to a top floor. Usually we can do this with ropes and a very experienced crew but sometimes a crane is brought in.
We work with the owner and the crane company to schedule an exact time for the lift. Cranes are charged by the hour so we can’t waste the clients money. If I’m on top of my game, the crane is there for less than 30 minutes since we only need it for truly huge items.
One client needed a hot-tub lifted from the roof (an amazing view while soaking) . Once it was on the ground, we took over and brought it to the new house where it went on the back deck. (not as amazing a view)
Faith can move mountains, for everything else there is BD Movers!
Teardowns on LBI
What is the biggest jump in moves at this time of year? Remodeling and tear-downs on Long Beach Island. I think we are involved with 30ish moves that have us loading PODS or moving the contents to a local self storage.
Part of our discussion on every job is how many containers will they need or what size unit at storage. Do they need climate control? Does this area of the island flood in storms?
Usually we pack the contents such as lamps, pictures, dishes but we also pack the mattresses and cover all the furniture with paper pads or blankets.
Do they have furniture they want donated? We have contacts at the local charities for that. We are active in “Move for Hunger” and every house gets a collection box for donated food. On moving day we gather it up and deliver it our food banks.
In the spring we are active moving everyone back into the new rebuilt home.
Faith can move mountains, for everything else there is BD Movers!(tm)
Jersey Shore Moving Diary
My first estimate was on LBI island for a couple that are tearing down the home they have so they can build a much larger one with views of the ocean. The last 2 years there have not been many doing this, but this fall I’m getting quite a few calls. My job will be to pack up the house, move it to self storage for the winter and then deliver it all back to the new house. I’ m encouraged that some of the “big money” people are getting optimistic about our economy. What was that commercial? When E F Hutting speaks, people listen?
BD Moves arrives at the house
My office calls, one person wants to move from Delaware to Delaware, another one has an eviction on Staten Island that has to go a local storage. We are not licensed in other states for local moves, my office knows this, but they’re curious why people are calling us. I can usually refer a local mover for them. Delaware I blank out on but I know a great NY mover and give them his name.
My next estimate is local. A women about my age is moving into a much smaller place. Her husband has left, and is going through his “thing”. I often hear one side of the situation when I am in the house and I always believe the one in front of me. Lately I’m hearing this type of story a lot. I really don’t care who was right or wrong, but when you have children and the house is being foreclosed, they are being evicted, and the kids are losing everything. Why do this to your kids? Hate him or her but take care of the kids. Rant over.
Do we move shopping carts?
An interesting call, can we move 15 shopping carts from one store to another? and then back in 2 days? Sure, why? They are filming something and need them for 24 hours.
My next is a repeat customer that bought a sofa that the store couldn’t deliver to the room she wanted it in. I go out to look it over. It will be tight, but really all we need to do is remove a light fixture at the stair landing and it should go. We schedule a date my crew will be in the area.
I love this idea, my next appointment wants to make an offer on a house. He knows the older women is getting a lot of interest and offers so… his contract offer includes paying for local moving cost. His offer will really stand out and she has one less thing to worry about. Clever.
3rd floor walk up for BD Movers
I stop by a job in progress to see how things are going. My luck, a 3rd floor walk up. I help the guys unload the last of it and set up the beds. We walk room by room to make sure everything is placed where they want it. My legs are a little shaky and I was there less than an hour, how do these guys do this everyday?
Faith can move mountains, for everything else there is BD Movers!(tm)
Hiring a New Jersey Mover and what are the added costs?
You are interviewing your NJ Moving company and want to know what could change the price. Here is the potential add on list.
Travel time is the cost of a mover getting to you and back to their warehouse. This is in additional to your hourly
BD Movers, Barnegat moving company, and their smiling customer
move. Some movers may add a nominal fee for this and some add quite a bit. If you are in Cape May and you hire a mover from Hoboken expect lots of travel time.
If you don’t finish the packing; lamps, pictures, dishes, etc, the mover will and they will charge for that service. This can be a substantial cost. Be clear with your mover at the time of the estimate on what you will pack and they will pack.
Change of order. You added items or you changed the conditions of the move. For instance, you did not sell the living room set and now it goes, or the movers get to the new house and find it is an apartment with a tiny elevator instead the ranch home they expected.
Some companies charge for tolls.
Some will charge for equipment. Normal use of a hand-truck or dolly is usually included. Piano equipment or hoisting may not be.
Some charge for blankets. It is legal if its in the their tariff, but I think it’s unfair. Does a carpenter charge for his hammer? I should have available to me all the tools that make me a professional.
Some charge for tape. A scam but legal if it’s in their tariff. They use rolls and rolls of it when they put blankets on the furniture.
Never legal are things like a mandatory tip, lunch money or a charge for gas for the trucks.
Faith can move mountains, for everything else there is BD Movers!(tm) your firm price moving company.
Why is my move more expensive than…
Often people want to compare moving prices with their friends, family, well… everyone. Why did Mrs Smith pay
Cindy and the moving men on move-in day
more than Mrs Clark when they both had a 3 bedroom house to move?
Every house is not filled equally, you may have a modest bedroom set and they may have a set made for giants.
Are you a one table top TV family or 5 sets with surround sound?
Are you moving the appliances or leaving them?
Do you collect tea cups and have 3 china cabinets filled with them or are you a 4 piece place setting person?
The average home has 100-125 boxes, are you above average? (you should have said yes here)
Are your kids under 5 and have every toy a grandparent can buy them? Or are they older with a xbox and laptop for toys?
Do you live on the 3rd floor of a walk up apartment? You will pay more than the 2nd floor or 1st floor clients. Why? it just takes so much longer to move the same stuff.
Did your friend do their own packing and do want the movers to pack everything?
Are you moving 1 block or to the next county? Are you moving to the Jersey Shore on a weekend in summer (with traffic backed up for miles) or are you moving in March when the roads are free of traffic?
You are unique, celebrate it, and pay the piper his due. 
Ultimately, your mover is charging by how long the job will take on local moves or they are charging by weight on long-distance moves (with extra charges for things that take extra time like long carry’s or flights of stairs)
You are in control , only hire a mover to do what makes sense for your budget and ability.
Faith can move mountains, for everything else there is BD Movers!(tm)
Moving testimonials for New Jersey Movers
This is short and sweet, does your moving company supply testimonials?
Happy clients of BD Movers
You know, people they have moved?
Or people that would recommend them?
They should.
Faith can move mountains, for everything else there is BD Movers!(tm)
EcoJoe(tm) and BD Movers
I recently became involved with EcoJoe for very selfish reasons. If your house doesn’t move, I can’t move you! Will a buried St Joseph sell your house? I don’t know. I do know that many, many, many home sellers do believe and have St Joe in the yard somewhere. (My family has one that everyone passes around) If the practice is wide spread, then let’s have fun with the idea and make this as responsible as possible.
I lifted this blog right off the EcoJoe(tm) web site. If you want more information , our office number is 800-310-1912.
Who is EcoJoe™?
The centuries-old practice of burying a statue of St. Joseph in the yard of a house for sale is supposed to enlist the Saint’s aid in finding a buyer. Before Joseph became the patron saint of real estate, he was Jesus’ foster father on earth and taught Jesus the trade of carpentry. He made sure that Jesus was protected and well-housed.
Today, thousands of home sellers and real estate agents continue the tradition of calling upon St. Joseph to help sell their property with successful results. This tradition is about trust, belief and sincerity, not a desire to make more money in a real estate transaction.
Our goal at EcoJoe ™ is to provide a greener alternative to existing plastic St. Joseph products on the real estate market. EcoJoe™ is made with 100% eco-friendly materials. Unlike the plastic St. Joseph products on the market, EcoJoe™ will not poison the earth if left buried. A real Saint would never do that!
Faith can move mountains, for everything else there is BD Movers!(tm)
Rogue Movers, NJWMA and the BBB
The New Jersey Warehouse and Movers Association has just posted a few videos to Youtube. (it ain’t just kids anymore) I can not tell you how pleased I am that they are being so proactive about this issue. ———Disclaimer: I serve on the board of directors for the NJWMA
Our industry has a problem with unlicensed movers, (have I mentioned why you want a licensed mover? have you read my first 13 posts?) Other states such as Maryland have also developed videos to inform our consumers of the problem. Bravo!
Speaking of the NJWMA, they also have program for “Circle of Excellence” movers. Although all of the member movers are great, these few companies have held themselves to even higher standards. I applaud all of them.
The BBB recently changed the way they grade companies. It now is a letter grade from F to A+ , based on pass customer service and few other factors. This should make it easier for the consumer to compare movers to each other.
Happy Easter!
Faith can mountains, for everything else there is BD Movers!
